LOCAL HISTORY SOCIETY: How a wartime RAF station at Moreton evolved into the world's best fire training college was described by Michael Kernan, a former staff officer at the college, at the April meeting of Moreton and District Local History Society. He said it all started with RAF personnel being trained in firefighting at the station after the war. Then the fire service took over completely, providing courses for firefighters not only from this country but all over the world. An average of 5,000 students passed through the college every year. He illustrated his talk with slides showing how the fire service had developed from wagons in the 1920s to the sophisticated vehicles of today and was thanked by David Green, a fellow fire officer at the college.

Mr Kernan arrived at the meeting as speaker and left as a member, he and his wife having joined the society now that their home is in Moreton.

FLOWER CLUB: Moreton Flower Club held their meeting on Thursday, March 27 at Broadwell Village Hall. Demonstrator for the evening was Mrs Elaine Freeman with spring flowers in a nest and modern designs in coloured oasis.

The next meeting will be on April 24 at 7.30pm, the demonstrator will be Mrs Elizabeth Bacon, her title will be Just one of those Things. New members and visitors are welcome.

INTEREST AND LEISURE CLUB: In the absence of Mr Ben Jeffrey, Mr David Cham was in the chair. After the business was completed the speaker Mornee Button was introduced and gave an excellent talk on Cotswold Rivers and Villagers. It was a journey with wonderful colour slides all taken by her, along the River Eye from its source via Upper Slaughter, Lower Slaughter by the Mill there. It has been there since recorded in the Domesday Book gradually the water power reduced and is now used as a museum. In Lower Slaughter is the finest example in the country of a Double Dovecot still in perfect condition. The River Eye goes via Salmonsbury Nature Reserve and the Oxfordshire Way footpath. These areas have an abundance of wild flowers and butterflies photographed in glorious colour. Then on to the River Dickler feeding lakes at Donnington which had a 14th century flour mill, then used for cloth, finally for Donnington Ales. Her journeys continued through Abbotsbury Estate near Stow to the River Windrush, Toddington and Cutsdean, Temple Guiting and Kineton thence to Bourton-on-the-Water with its lakes with wildlife and fisheries. All these had wonderful places of interest too numerous to record them all.

Mrs Mavis McLoughlin gave a warm vote of thanks in appreciation of Mornee Button's splendid talk.